Floating heat exchanger support



J. B. PENDLETON FLOATING HEAT EXCBANGER SUPPORT Filed Aug. 6, 1945 mmvron J.B. PENDLETON BY lg g ATTORNEYS Patented July 5, 1949 FLOATING HEAT EXCHANGER SUPPORT James B. Pendleton, Bartlesville, Okla", asslgnor to Phillips Petroleum Company, a corporation of Delaware Application August 6, 1945, Serial No. 609,218

2 (Claims. (01. 248-358) This invention relates to heat exchangers. In one of its more specific aspects it relates to apparatus and a method for the support of heat exchangers adapted to high temperature exchange wherein linear expansion of parts due to high temperatures is appreciable.

in heat exchange equipment for operation at temperatures of 400 to 500 F. linear expansion need not be excessive. This condition may hold when pipe sections are relatively short or when suiiicient bends are present to absorb the linear expansion. However, for rather large temperature changes elongation due to thermal expansion may become quite appreciable. In case of long pipe sections there may be a suflicient number of bends or one or more U-type bends may be intentionally installed. Considerable art is available on expansion joints, U-bends or circular or other arcs or other types of expansion absorbers for use in transportation pipe lines, in steam lines, and hot oil lines when such lines are of sumcient length that such relatively large designs can be used.

Thermal expansions in relatively short pipes present an entirely different problem. This problem is especially acute when a short section of pipe connects two vessels which are large or are made of heavy materials necessitated by a high working pressure. A temperature differenceirom atmospheric to say a catalyst chamber regeneration temperature is a relatively great temperature difference to be absorbed by a pipe section between two rigidly fixed vessels. Regeneration temperatures are seldom maintained as low as 1000 F.; more commonly they are of the order of 1300 to 1400" F. and can be higher than 1400 F. ii the catalyst can withstand the high temperature without permanent injury. Pipes to carry gaseous effluents of such temperature are of course installed at atmospheric temperature, then when heated to say 1400" F. considerable expansion occurs. For example, when a steel pipe about feet in length is heated from 100 to say 1400", the linear expansion is of the order of 1% inches. This expansion is quite large when it must be absorbed over a length of only 10 feet. Thus, my invention has for an object the provision of means for absorbing expansion due to severe thermal changes in relatively short sections of pipe connecting two vessels.

Another object of my invention is the provision of means for absorbing linear expansion of a short section of pipe connecting two thick walled, rigid vessels.

Still another object oi my invention is the provision of means for absorbing linear expansion of a short section of pipe connecting two vessels wherein one vessel is mounted on a floating support especially adapted to assist in compensating for such expansion.

Yet another object of my invention is the provision of a non-rigid support for a vessel, which supportis adapted to absorb movement due to thermal expansion and at the same time to provide easy means for installing and removing the vessel.

These and other objects and advantages will be apparent to those skilled in such art by reference to the following detailed description and annexed drawing which respectively describes and illustrates a preferred embodiment of my invention, and wherein Figure 1 shows a side elevational view of the vessel support and supported vessel in place.

Figure 2 shows an end elevational view of the vessel support and supported vessel in place.

Figure 3 shows a detailed cross section, in part, along the line 3-3 of Figure 1, showing the movable side supporting means.

Referring now to Figure 1, a waste heat exchanger H is composed of an outer shell l2, a gas inlet pipe it, a gas outlet pipe 33, a head member 36 having an inlet pipe 34 and an outlet pipe 35. Pipes 34 and 35 may be provided with long portions at right angles to their vertical movement, or large turns, or coils, or any other means old in the art to allow for expansion, as their contents is merely a cooling fluid which presents no problems of quick transfer through pipe l4 necessary for reactant chemicals in line 14. The exchanger contains a conventional tube system, not shown, for effecting the actual heat exchange between the heating and heated fluids. This exchanger is constructed and adapted to relatively high temperature service, as for example, for use with hot combustion gases from regenerating catalyst chambers.

Such an application is illustrated in Figure 1 of the drawing in which a catalyst chamber 39 supported by supporting members 40, which in turn rest on bases 4|, is disposed directly over and above the exchanger I I. This catalyst chamber may contain catalyst of substantially any type useful for cracking, reforming, polymerizing or other reactions'wherein carbonaceous material is deposited upon the catalyst. The deposition of such material on catalysts, as is well known,

' tempers the original activity, and after a period drawn from operation. In modern practice such spent catalysts are usually regenerated or revivified in some manner. The common method of such regeneration is to burn the carbonaceous matter by a controlled combustion. During this burning or controlled combustion, large volumes of high temperature gases are available as a source of heat. It is for a better and more eiilcient utilization of this heat that my invention is directed.

In such installations vessels containing catalyst are ordinarily situated some distance of! the ground level to furnish easy access to all portions of the vessels. For best utilization of regeneration heat I have found that the catalyst chamber should be mounted suiilciently high as to permit a heat exchanger, as exchanger ll of Figure 1, to be installed directly underneath and to provide pipe l4 to convey the hot gases from the bottom of the catalyst chamber 38 to the inlet pipe [3 of the exchanger.

The efliuent combustion gases from a regenerating mass of catalyst will vary in temperature, this usually being dependent upon the catalyst. In many cases this temperature may be as high as 1200 to even 1500 F.; 1400 F. is a common maximum regeneration temperature.

The steel pipe i 4 connecting the catalyst chamber and the heat exchanger will expand considerably when heated from a normal installation temperature of say a maximum of 100 F. to an operating temperature of 1400 F. Such an expansion for a pipe length of feet will be from 1 to 1% inches. A 10 foot length of pipe rigidly fastened to two vessels such as catalyst chamber 39 and heat exchanger ll cannot absorb a pipe expansion of this magnitude. Pipe expansion joints function well under certain conditionsbut not so well at high temperatures. of this expansion problem is the subject of my invention.

I have found that when a catalyst chamber and heat exchanger are rigidly joined by a section of pipe not adapted to absorb thermal expansion, the expansion can be absorbed by a supporting spring-fulcrum arrangement for the exchanger. This support is a mobile support adapted, as mentioned, to absorb the thermal expansion and yet be sufficiently rigid as to support the weight of the exchanger mechanism.

The exchanger I l is equipped with elongated side fins 38, one rigidly attached to either side of the exchanger walls as shown in the drawing. These fins may be riveted to the exchanger walls, but preferably should be welded and extend nearly the full length of the exchanger body, not including the head member 36. These fins composed of horizontal plates i 6 reinforced by webs l8. On the lower side of the plates I6 are two bars 30 welded into place at a spaced distance apart so that steel balls or ball bearings It! may be inserted therebetween. These bars are intended to serve as retaining guides for the ball bearings.

I-beams I! with similar guide bars 3| serve to support the exchanger with the balls I! serving as bearings. These I-beams in turn are supported by the front column members 2i and rear columns 23. These columns-or post members are made rigid by such brace members as the front braces 22 and 29, and corresponding rear braces 24 and 29. The rear cross braces 29 are directly back of the front cross braces 29 shown in Figure 2.

Horizontal movement of the exchanger H The solution along the I-beam is prevented by bolts 20 which pass through the fin plate It and I-beam flanges.

'Ib absorb vertically downward movement of the head 36 end of the exchanger, the front column members II are fixed to shoes 42 which in turn rest upon helical springs 21. These springs then rest upon bed plates 28 and these in turn upon concrete bases 32. Cross members 3|A at front and back prevent spreading of the respective columns and serve as a means to which the front and back cross members 28 may be attached. Resulting from this construction, then, with the position of the catalyst chamber 38 flxed and upon heating of the pipe l4 with its resultant expansion and lengthening, the springs 21 will be compressed to compensate for this increase in length. l

The vertical movement of the head end of the exchangerwill be around point 25 as a center. Thus point 25 is a pivot joint carrying a portion of the weight of the exchanger and its share of the weight of the I-beams and structural framework supporting the exchanger.

A further point of utility in my'apparatus is the bolts 20. With these bolts on either side of the exchanger fastened in place, both ends of the exchanger are free toexpand upon heating up and to contract upon cooling of the exchanger. Also, when it is desired to gain access to the lower portion of the catalyst chamber through pipe it or into the exchanger through inlet pipe l3, it is only necessary to remove the bolts from the flanges l5 and 43, disconnect pipes 84. and 35, removes bolts 20 and roll the exchanger from right to left or toward the fulcrum 25 end of the I beam supports. And conversely, to reconnect the exchanger it is merely necessary to roll it into place, insert bolts 20 and make the several pipe connections.

Materials of construction for the catalyst chamber, heat exchanger, interconnecting pipe l4, exchanger fins, I-beams and other members of the apparatus need not be special material but may be selected from that commercially available.

The hereinabove described catalyst chamber and heat exchanger are merely exemplary of the utility of my invention and are in no way intended to be limiting factors. My exchanger support may find other uses wherein thermal expansion of short pipe sections is abnormally great and at least one connecting vessel because at its size and/or weight is definitely fixed in posi- Having disclosed my invention, I claim:

1. A heat exchanger unit comprising in combination an elongated relatively horizontally disposed heat exchanger chamber having a hot heat exchange material inlet in the upper part of a first end portion and a hot heat exchange material outlet in a second end portion; an elongated fin member relatively horizontally disposed and rigidly aflixed to each lateral side of said heat exchanger chamber,.;said fins being disposed in substantially the same horizontal plane and extending longitudinally along the sides of said heat exchanger chamber; at least two guide ribs spaced apart and extending longitudinally along the lower surface of each said fin; a pair of parallel rider members, each said rider member having at least two guide ribs spaced apart and extending longitudinally along its upper surface; a plurality of roller members longitudinally spaced apart between said guide ribs along the length of said rider members; retainer means aflixing said heat exchanger chamber to each said rider member at a single point along said iin member, said retainer means being substantially equally spaced from one end of said fin members and said roller members being retained between said rib members on said fin members and said rider members; support members rigidly aiilxed to the ends of said rider members adjacent said second end portion of said heat exchanger chamber, said support members being pivotally supported by a pivot support member; and support members rigidly affixed to the ends of said rider members adjacent said first end portion of said heat exchanger chamber, said support members being compressibly supported by spring members, whereby as said hot heat exchange material inlet pipe expands longitudinally upon heating, said expansion is absorbed by said spring support members.

2. A heat exchanger unit comprising in combination an elongated relatively horizontally disposed heat exchanger chamber having a hot heat exchange material inlet in the upper part of a first end portion and a hot heat exchange material outlet in the lower part 0! a second end portion; an elongated fin member relatively horizontally disposed and rigidly afllxed to each lateral side of said heat exchanger chamber, said flns being disposed in substantially the same horizontal plane and extending longitudinally along the sides of said heat exchanger chamber; at least two guide ribs spaced apart and extending longitudinally along the lower surface of each said fin; a pair of parallel rider members, each said rider member having at least two guide ribs spaced apart and extending longitudinally along its upper surface; a plurality of roller members longitudinally spaced apart between said guide 6 ribs along the length of said rider members; bolt members aiflxlngsaid heat exchanger chamber to each said rider member at a single point in substantially the same vertical-plane as said hot heat exchange material inlet, thereby retaining said roller members between said rib members on said fin members and said rider members; support members,.extending downwardly and perpendicularly from said rider members, rigidly aiiixed to the end of said rider members adjacent said second end portion of said heat exchanger chamber, said support members being pivotally supported by a pivot support member; and second support members, extending downwardly and perpendicularly from said rider members,rigidly afllxed to the end of said rider members adjacent said first end portion of said heat exchanger chamber, said second support members being joined at their lower ends by a shoe memher; at least one compression spring member extending between a support base and said shoe member, whereby as said hot heat exchange material inlet pipe expands longitudinally upon heating said expansion is absorbed by said spring support members.

JAMES B. PENDLETON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the Ray Dec. 9, 1941 

